State Senator Janice Bowling (R-Tullahoma) announced on Thursday that $71 million in state funding for technical colleges was approved for Senate District 16. The appropriated funds are part of a $56.2 billion budget passed by the General Assembly in April. Other Republican priorities in the budget include efforts to strengthen families, bolster school safety, improve education, create new opportunities for economic development, and modernize transportation.
“I am thrilled to announce that our district is receiving $71 million for TCAT renovations and expansions,” said Sen. Bowling. “These funds will help support our students in the district who choose to go to technical school.”
The state appropriations going to Senate District 16 includes:
- $46 million to build a replacement campus for TCAT McMinnville
- $25 million to build a new campus in Coffee County
McMINNVILLE SUMMARY
Construct a replacement campus to include new academic buildings, demolition of existing buildings, and expansion of parking lots. The project includes improvements to the site, infrastructure, and parking. New buildings will include classrooms, labs, meeting space, offices, and administrative and support space. $46,000,000
COFFEE COUNTY SUMMARY
Construct a new Coffee County facility to include academic buildings and parking lots. The project includes site and infrastructure improvements. New buildings will include classrooms, labs, meeting space, offices, and administrative and support space. $25,000,000
Notably, the budget provides a $407 million cut in taxes, the largest in Tennessee’s history. These cuts aim to lower the tax burden on businesses, boost Tennessee’s economic competitiveness, and promote entrepreneurship and small businesses. It provides targeted relief to families with a three-month-long tax break on groceries from Aug. 1-Oct. 31.
“I am also very glad to provide historic tax cuts to Tennesseans and small businesses this year. It’s important for citizens to be able to keep more of their hard-earned money,” added Bowling.
The slate of budget and legislative priorities included significant investments in school safety, with $223 million to provide a school resource officer for every public school and a Homeland Security agent for every county. These funds will also provide safety grants for private schools.
Lawmakers in this session made key investments in transportation and infrastructure by providing $3.3 billion to alleviate urban traffic congestion and improve rural roads to support economic growth and development.
It also makes a $250 million deposit in the state’s Rainy-Day Fund, which serves as the state’s savings account to help withstand economic downturns, bringing the fund to a historic balance of more than $2 billion.
The budget also allocates $953 million to fully fund the Tennessee College of Applied Technology Masterplan to upgrade and expand TCATs across the state.
Tennessee Republicans remain committed to keeping taxes low. Tennessee is the second-lowest taxed state in the nation and collects zero income tax. Tennessee holds the highest bond rating issued by all three of the nation’s credit rating agencies, which reflects extreme confidence in the Volunteer State’s preparedness in meeting financial commitments in tough economic times.
